Raheem Sterling
In my last transfer round-up, I focused on Liverpool’s supposed reluctance to press on with a deal for Memphis Depay due to the amount of wide players already at the club. Now, however, it seems possible that one of them wingers that Brendan Rodgers mentioned could be leaving Anfield. You know who. Raheem Sterling has evidently told Brendan Rodgers that he wants to leave Liverpool this summer.
This has obviously been an ongoing saga and a very complicated one too. But before I go any further on this, it is essential to point out that the main people behind these issues are most certainly Raheem Sterling’s representatives. Aidy Ward, Sterling’s agent, is the man being put to the sword by plenty of Liverpool fans at present. Jamie Carragher made a few interesting points on this on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football. He claimed he knew for certain that Sterling’s agent had been feeding the press these stories. No surprise there, of course, but he also mentioned that Sterling and Ward have known each other for a long time and are very close.
What’s clear is that Sterling is being ‘represented’ in a very bad way. A lot of people are being misled. Both Carragher and Neville were quick to point out that Raheem Sterling is not a greedy character at all. In fact, he’s a keen learner and a very hard worker, hence why he’s got to where he is now. But, of course, at 20, he’s far from the finished article. There are a lot of people who are judging Sterling based on recent performances and arguing he wouldn’t even be that big a loss for Liverpool. I’d heavily disagree. Sterling hasn’t been his usual self for about 80% of this season. The end of last season, the World Cup, performances like Spurs away this season were the proper Raheem Sterling and one we haven’t seen for a long time. I’d also argue that he’s missed Daniel Sturridge. Them two link up very well together. But there’s no doubt that the main reason behind Sterling’s drop in form has been this contract saga.
So how will it end? It’s still far too early to say, but Rodgers and Liverpool have been making it clear for months now that Sterling will definitely not be leaving the club this summer. I fully expect the club to stand firm on this, a lot like they did with Luis Suarez two years ago. There is no doubt in my mind that Sterling would be doing the wrong thing by leaving Liverpool. He has the best coach he could possibly have to help him in Brendan Rodgers. He’d be a massive loss if he were to go. I think Sterling needs to be patient. There is enough talent at the club in the form of both playing and coaching staff to ensure it will challenge for trophies in the coming year. Change clubs? No Raheem, change agent.
Yevhen Konoplyanka
This whole saga has had a lot of people regretting the fact the club moved away from the Memphis Depay deal. He completed his Manchester United medical on Monday, but Liverpool have still been linked with a whole host of wide players who could, potentially, replace Sterling. Yevhen Konoplyanka is available on a free this summer and has this week spoken of his regret for not completing his move to Liverpool in January 2014. He may well be an option if the club does decide to strengthen in the wide areas.
Andre Wisdom
However, there are still strong indications that the club are looking to save money for a striker and promoting within in areas that could be added to. For instance, the Daily Mail hinted last Wednesday that the club would not sign a new right back and would instead run the rule over Andre Wisdom next season. There have been links to the likes of Martin Montoya and Villarreal’s Mario Gaspar, but there are signs that the club will look to stick with what they’ve got and save money to target players in more pressing areas of the field, just as they seem to have decided with wingers and centre backs, too. Paul Joyce has this week reported that Liverpool expect Kolo Toure to sign a new one-year-deal at the club.
James Milner
One of those areas that needs definite work is midfield. The James Milner links continue. Despite Manchester City’s best efforts, the signs at the moment are that he will look to move on in search of a regular, central midfield spot, rejecting reported weekly wages of £165k at City. Liverpool seem favourites to sign him at the moment, but Arsenal are also being strongly linked. He’d be a fantastic signing on a free. He has been one of Manchester City’s players of the season.
Asier Illarramendi
There have been two other midfield players strongly linked with the club this week. One is Real Madrid’s Asier Illaramendi. I mentioned in my last article that Liverpool were being linked with a lot of holding midfield players, it seems there is a chance that Illaramendi may be the one the club have decided to go for. The 25-year-old was bought by Madrid for around £34m in the summer of 2013, but Liverpool are thought to be able to purchase him for around a third of that. He is a holding midfield player with a good passing range and would probably take up the exact role Steven Gerrard’s been used in in the last 18 months. The other link has been to Inter Milan’s Croatian star Mateo Kovacic. With Roberto Mancini’s side pressing on with their interest in Yaya Toure, Italian reports suggest that they could be tempted in to offloading Kovacic to Liverpool. He’s a different type of player to James Milner but plays in the position that he’d want to play in too. I’d assume it’d be Milner or Kovacic, if indeed we are interested in any of these players!
Christian Benteke
The main priority this summer, of course, is a striker. Links to Christian Benteke carry on, but Wolfsburg, Roma, Chelsea and Manchester United are also reportedly pursuing him. Twitter rumours suggest that Liverpool have an interest in Gonzalo Higuain.
Alexandre Lacazette
Elsewhere, Alexandre Lacazette has fueled speculation that he may leave Lyon this summer and reports in France suggest that the likes of Liverpool and PSG have an interest in the Frenchman, who could be available for around £28m. There have also been links to Stevan Jovetic via The Mirror, who also link Rickie Lambert with a move to Bournemouth. Danny Ings’ arrival still seems inevitable. Brendan Rodgers called him ‘an outstanding young player’ in an interview on Friday.
Asmir Begovic
Finally, Brad Jones has confirmed that he will be leaving the club this summer, meaning that Liverpool will almost certainly target another goalkeeper. In Denmark there have been reports linking Liverpool to Leicester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, whilst the Mirror claim that Stoke City’s Asmir Begovic could be a target.
The links go on and it’s not even the start of the transfer window yet. One thing Brendan Rodgers did make clear last week was that Liverpool would not be bringing in as many players as last summer. Quality over quantity – the key for Liverpool in this summer’s transfer window.
